The use of computers becomes more prevalent every day. In particular, the use of portable computers has increased as people become more reliant on using a computer everywhere they travel. Furthermore, the size of computer devices has decreased while simultaneously the capabilities per unit volume has increased. As a result, computer manufacturers face many design challenges in creating a smaller, more powerful computer.
The design challenges for portable computers require that the computer be light weight, by today's standards, and yet remain as powerful as some desktop computers. One approach to expanding the capability of a computer, while maintaining or reducing the weight of the device, is to incorporate removable devices into the system which expand the number of functions and the computing capacity of the computer.
Each computer manufacturer often has its own unique approach to their computer product. As a result, there is little interchangeability between many computer accessories and devices. Although they have generally not significantly increased in price over the past several years, computers are nonetheless a major purchase for most consumers. Thus, without standardization, consumers must choose which computer manufacturer from whom they wish to buy their computer and all of the accessories.
As consumers buy and use computers for wider and more diverse applications, a computer user must be able to customize the capabilities of their computer in accordance with their individual needs. Furthermore, computer users' needs may change over the lifetime of the computer. However, each computer manufacturer may not provide the diversity in devices necessary for customizing a computer for a particular user. Therefore, it would be advantageous if a computer user could customize their computer after its purchase using a wide variety of accessories and devices from multiple sources of computer manufacturers.
One device computer users have employed to customize their computers is a PC (Personal Computer) card. The PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) standard was created in order to provide a standardized, more stream lined approach to the interchangability of PC cards. The standard establishes a credit-card-size package which can be plugged into a 68-pin host adapter socket built into the computer. Each package maintains the same slot width and depth, but the thickness of each card can differ. The PCMCIA developed three different slot thicknesses which include Type I, Type II, and Type III. The three current different slot thicknesses are: Type I=3.3 mm, Type II=5.0 mm, and Type III=10.5 mm.
The PCMCIA standard was developed by several different computer manufacturers. The single standard provides for uniformity in PC cards. When computer manufacturers comply with the design requirements of the PCMCIA standard, computer users can purchase a wider variety of products for use with their computer, regardless of the computer manufacturer, due to the interchangability of the products. PC cards in compliance with the PCMCIA standard are independent of the operating system or devices; the peripheral cards can be plugged into a PC, Mac, Newton, or future generation computers.
While PC cards have advanced computer capabilities, software programs continue to require additional power and storage. Accordingly, what is needed is a way to expand computer capabilities while accommodating current weight restrictions. What is further needed is a way to implement the expansion in current devices.